A/N: We continue the tale.
Disclaimer: I don't own Chuck
Sarah was relaxing on the couch, looking at their Christmas tree, sipping a glass of wine, listening to instrumental Christmas jazz, the Thanksgiving dinner a success.
"I hope you're proud of yourself," Zondra groused, looking over at Sarah, grabbing a plate off the drying rack and beginning to hand dry it. "You ruined a perfectly good spy." Chuck turned to her slowly, wide-eyed. He looked past Zondra to the blond taking the plate out of Zondra's hand. "Dude, Dakota knows."
"I was spying on Zondra," Dakota admitted. "Trying to figure her out."
"I don't know if there's enough time left in the world to do that," Chuck said, turning back to washing the dishes. He yelped as Zondra thwipped him with a twisted up towel. "What was that for?"
"Making fun of me in front of my girlfriend!" Zondra snapped.
"Excuse me," Dakota said. Zondra's eyes went wide as she realized she had just used a term and never discussed it with said, thought to be, girlfriend.
"Wait!" came a yell from the living room as they heard Sarah rushing in. "I gotta see this!" Zondra gave Chuck a helpless look. Chuck grinned at her, looked over her shoulder at Dakota, and then back to Zondra. He winked at Zondra, and Zondra nodded, understanding. She turned slowly.
"Listen," Zondra began.
"I told you, I don't label things," Dakota cut her off.
"I know," Zondra tried again.
"And just because I'm not dating anyone else and would rip someone's arm off and beat them with it if they tried to date you," Dakota continued.
"Wait, what?" Zondra asked.
Dakota kept going, grinning. "I mean, yeah, I like you, I care for you, and if someone were to force the term on me, I get how some could see it, but you legit told your friend before you asked me?"
"Do you want to be my girlfriend?" Zondra asked. Dakota stepped up to Zondra and kissed her.
"Think that's a yes?" Chuck asked Sarah.
"Looking that way," Sarah replied, nodding taking a sip of her wine. She sat down the glass. "Why don't we give them some time alone."
"You just want to cuddle," Chuck replied, tossing the washcloth onto the divider in the sink so it could drain.
"You complaining?" she asked, sliding her arm around him, the two walking toward their bedroom.
"Do I look stupid?" Chuck asked, closing their bedroom door.
"Are they always like that?" Dakota asked, pulling away from her girlfriend.
"Yes," Zondra replied. "And it's exhausting." Dakota gave her a look. "I mean I am happy for them, but it is exhausting."
}o{
Chuck walked into the kitchen the next morning, pulling up short, seeing two women sitting there, neither of them his wife. "Well, this is awkward," Chuck began. Dakota stiffened, but Zondra laid a hand on her arm, shaking her head. "I apologize for not being up early enough to have coffee made, I am a terrible host."
Dakota shook her head and rolled her eyes at him. "How are you for real?"
"I'm more into computer science than science science," Chuck replied.
"Will you give the poor woman a break," Sarah asked, walking into the kitchen. "Some of us can't handle you right after we wake up." Chuck bounced his eyebrows at her, making Zondra groan.
"I," Zondra said, raising her hand. "I can't handle you right after you wake up."
"And yet you're my bestie," Chuck told her.
"I gotta go," Dakota said, pushing away from the bar, standing, and kissing Zondra on the cheek. "Gotta check in with my trainer. I'll see you later," she said, pointing at Zondra. Zondra smiled, watching Dakota as she exited the house. She turned back, and rolled her eyes, Chuck and Sarah watching her. Chuck took a sip of coffee, and she suddenly felt like she had entered a world where they were her parents.
"I have a question," Chuck began.
"I'm not talking about my relationship with her," Zondra told him.
"Did you know she was a CIA recruit before or after you started chasing her?" Chuck continued. Zondra gave him a look. "You did chase her."
"I found out after," Zondra said with a shrug. Chuck kept watching her, taking another sip of coffee. "Fine, I was interested, did some research and then found out she was being recruited. I found her really cool and interesting."
"Does she know?" Sarah asked, concern on her face.
"Who do you think I am, Casey?" Zondra asked.
"You do grunt a lot," Chuck pointed out.
"Zondra, all I'm say is…you don't want to have that relationship," Sarah told her. Zondra nodded.
"I know Sar, I know," Zondra agreed. "She knows it all." Zondra sighed. "Especially about my partner." She gave Chuck a look.
"I felt I have done something," Chuck told Sarah. The look from Zondra intensified. "What did I do?"
"Have you checked your email?" Zondra asked. "Your CIA email?"
"My what?" Chuck asked, looking from Sarah to Zondra.
"Zondra," Sarah said, grinning.
Zondra began to laugh. "We had some documents delivered. We rarely email anything, because there are hackers out there who can get to the files." She gave Chuck a look.
"Is she referring to me?" Chuck asked as he leaned toward Sarah.
"Not specifically you, just those of your ilk," Sarah replied. Chuck pulled away faux insulted. Sarah rolled her eyes. "So do we have candidates?" Chuck did a double take and turned to Sarah. "I might be the one testing out the physicalness of the candidates and submitting my report to a CIA agent."
"I'm confused, do they not trust Zondra's work?" Chuck asked.
"No, nothing like that," Zondra told Chuck. "I'm a bit of a hard ass-"
"No!" Chuck said sarcastically. He dodged as if something was thrown at him, but Zondra had thrown nothing.
"You are an idiot," Zondra told him. "Should I continue or are you going to keep being a goof?"
"He can't help being a goof," Sarah pointed out.
"You like it," Chuck told her.
"Would you two quit flirting?!" Chuck and Sarah both looked slightly ashamed…slightly. Zondra huffed. "Curls, you understand people and thinking, and you're a good judge of character. I'm not a good judge of character, I only see what's in front of me, and sometimes I miss things like effort and other important things." She looked at Sarah. "Sarah is good at that."
"Nothing wrong with getting people you trust to question your motives, or what you're doing," Chuck said shrugging. "Makes you better in the long run."
"Thanks," Zondra told him. She reached into her bag and pulled out her files. "So, let's look over some students." Chuck and Sarah shared a look, sighed, and sat down at the table to go through the files.
}o{
Sarah and Zondra discussed the last student and moved them into the large pile. There was a small pile of 5 people. "So that pile is the group that we're looking at to be agents?" Chuck asked.
"No, these are the five Sarah and I think should be kicked right now," Zondra replied. Chuck sat up.
"When you mean out of the class, right?" Chuck asked.
"No, we mean from consideration from the program," Zondra told him.
"But-but that's not fair," Chuck argued. "I mean, what do you really know about someone until you've seen them in action."
"We've seen their scores," Sarah said with a shrug.
"But they haven't done anything wrong," Chuck argued.
"Not made for the CIA," Zondra said with a shrug. "It's a hard life, Chuck. That's the good thing about this class, we can talk to students, recruit them in the light, but we can also quickly weed out the ones that just don't work."
"Save them from a life of regret," Sarah added.
"But you haven't given them a chance…a choice!"
Sarah and Zondra turned to each other and grinned. "Is that good enough, director?" Zondra asked into her shirt button.
The front door opened and the director of the CIA walked in. "Director?" Chuck said, standing. "What are you doing here? Why are you here? Shouldn't you be enjoying your Thanksgiving?"
"My daughter lives nearby," Gale replied. "And I had to prove a point to some of my colleagues." Chuck gave her a questioning look. "Some people in my office believe that you wouldn't stand up to these two."
"Let's be honest, I was questioning it," Zondra admitted.
"You are so kind to me," Chuck told her.
"I haven't broken your face," Zondra pointed out.
Chuck turned back to Gale, his lips pressed together, his eyes widened. "Noted."
Gale laughed. "Chuck, you do stand up for those that need it, and I am quite sure if the data shows these candidates don't deserve to be in the program after your class, you would go along with that assessment." Chuck stood there, quietly. "Chuck?"
"Director, I will make my evaluations off of what I see, off of what I experience," Chuck replied, nearly shaking.
"Good," Gale said softly. Chuck blew out a breath of relief, making her chuckle. "I want your opinion, Chuck. I may not always agree with it, I may go against it, but I want it."
"Nerd's got balls," Zondra muttered, giving him a prideful smile.
"Now, I have shopping to do," Gale told them, earning confused looks. "What? Can't I go Black Friday shopping?"
"Why do I think you Black Friday shopping is more mission oriented than most?" Chuck asked. Gale winked at him.
"I'm off," she told them. "Zondra watch out for your partner. Sarah, watch out for your husband, and Chuck…" Chuck looked at her expectantly. "Just keep being you."
"So watch out for everyone," Sarah said.
"Exactly," Gale told them. "I look forward to our venture together." With that she left. As soon as the door closed, Chuck slumped.
"Well done," Zondra told him, slapping him on the arm. "Now, I got a date with a babe."
"Don't you mean Dakota has a date with a babe?" Chuck asked her. Zondra turned to him.
"Maybe it's not that I want a Bartowski as much as a Bartowski wants me," Zondra told him. Sarah rolled her eyes.
"It's true, I have a Great-Uncle Joe, that has one tooth, and a wisp of hair he combs over his head," Chuck began. Zondra turned and headed toward her part of the house, Chuck following her. "And he has a lip with nerve damage that makes the lip flop and drool run out. When he saw your picture the drool just flowed."
"Go away!" Zondra yelled, shutting the door and holding it, as Chuck stood on the other side, still talking.
"Listen, I know the age difference could be a thing, but you gotta respect a man that can still chew a well-done steak with one tooth," Chuck continued.
"SARAH! GET YOUR NERD!"
Sarah walked over, grabbed him by the belt loop on his pants. "Come on, Chuck, you can tell me about the Bartowski that wants me."
"It's me," Chuck said, brightening up. "But Zondra, I forgot to tell you about his ear wax collection," Chuck called back to the door. Sarah pulled Chuck into their bed room. "He has four mason jars of it!" he yelled just as Sarah shut the door.
A/N: Oh my. Thanks for reading.